OSHKOSH - A small gallery on the second floor of the Oshkosh Public Museum, referred to as the Winnebago Room, explores the topics of indigenous tribes, European settlement, military history and other notable events of Oshkosh’s past.

The gallery was installed in the late 1990s and features an eclectic array of artifacts, including Native American tools, pioneer firearms, firefighting paraphernalia and military uniforms.

Effective Oct. 15, the Winnebago Room will be closed as the existing exhibit is dismantled to transform this space into an appropriate setting to house an exhibit on the “Menominee Clans Story.” Currently at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Museum of Natural History, the Clans figures were meticulously hand carved and painted by Menominee artist James Frechette Jr.

“The Oshkosh Public Museum is honored to have been chosen as the holder of these important Clans figures,” Museum Director Brad Larson said. “Each figure and its associated implements were done with authenticity and imbued with meaning and spiritual power. Once completed this spring, visitors will not only admire the beauty and spirituality of the figures, but they will also learn about their responsibility to the Menominee people and the natural world they are intimately tied to.”

The Museum’s dynamic “People of the Waters” exhibition opened last year, showcasing over 1,000 artifacts that represents Wisconsin’s prehistoric past and illustrates Native American culture which stretches back at least 13,000 years. Planning has also begun to develop a compelling, long-term exhibition to replace the current second-floor galleries that will continue the story of Oshkosh’s rich history.

Located at 1331 Algoma Blvd., the Museum’s regular hours are 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Sundays.

For more information about the Museum’s exciting events and exhibits, visit oshkoshmuseum.org, call 920-236-5799 or email museum@ci.oshkosh.wi.us.

Karla Szekeres is the marketing and membership coordinator at the Oshkosh Public Museum.